Where’s your Chinook?

Support Local!

If there is one thing that I firmly believe, it is supporting local. Local artists, local authors, local businesses, local local local! One day when I was shopping at a local Half Price Books, I came across this wonderful little book called Chinook Book. What drew me to it initially was the wonderful artwork on the cover of broccoli being mowed by a tiny little man with a push mower. Under the title is “Everything we (heart) about the Twin Cities”, so I picked it up and began skimming through the pages. It’s a coupon book!

Now normally most coupon books in my past have always been of the big box stores or major chains in the area. However Chinook Book is completely different in that they support exclusively local businesses. You might say “yeah, some company from outta state just randomly picking businesses in the area!”, but you’d be wrong. Chinook may have been born in Oregon in 1999, but it has been a part of the Twin Cities for some time now. In fact, the local Chinook has an office in the Uptown area of Minneapolis. Not only are they big about local, but they are even bigger about sustainable.

Sustainable

What this means in a nutshell is that the businesses that Chinook partners with must be held to a standard in order to maintain reuse within the community. When most people think of sustainability and reuse, they think most commonly of recycling, I know I do. However it doesn’t always apply to recycling, it could apply to organic, it could apply to organizations that do good will, support community growth and advancement, and several other criteria. If you’re interested in reading more detail about Chinook’s criteria, visit here.

Not only does Chinook have hundreds of pages with hundreds and hundreds of coupons, but it has an app too! And in today’s digital age, apps on our smart phones are a wonderful novelty. Instead of trying to explain it all, just watch this little video.

In the Chinook Book, there are 8 primary categories of coupons. I assure you that I have literally looked at every single coupon, not just a quick skim. And I wanted to point out my favorite coupons from each section:

Grocery Products – $1.00 off any CleanWell product. This is my favorite grocery product (I know, it’s not food) because just the other day I realized that our all-purpose cleaner is almost empty, and I had said to Jenna that I think we need to start looking at cleaning products that are more environmentally friendly. Low and behold, a perfect coupon for that very such thing that we need.

Local Grocery – Now this one was tough because there are a ton of retailers in this section that I have literally never heard of but damn it, I plan on exploring each and every one of them. Now, whenever I go to my evening/weekend part-time job, I drive past this little store that I always glance at but didn’t know much about. Annona Gourmet in Saint Anthony specializes in olive oils and vinegars but also carries pasta and spices. With this coupon, you can get a 60ml oil or vinegar (your choice) with your purchase of a 375ml oil or vinegar.

Dining – This one was easy, Hazel’s Northeast and you get $5 off your purchase of $25 or more. I’ve eaten here before, well before I knew what Chinook was. In fact, have a read of this.

Entertainment & Family – This is a tough category because there is a ton of really great places and businesses in here. Particularly I want to point out The Heights Theatre. This classic theater has been around in Columbia Heights since the 1920’s. With this coupon you can get a BOGO (buy one get one) movie tickets.

Wellness – Now this one I picked mostly superficially, but it just sounds really cool; The Salt Cave Minneapolis. With this 50% off your session coupon, you can experience the healing power of salt, in a cave, made of salt, in the heart of Minneapolis. How cool does that sound?

Fashion & Gifts – Gypsy Moon is this eclectic little store in Saint Paul’s Highland Park area. If you ever sat down and thought to yourself “Oh man, what am I going to get (insert name) for (insert occasion)?” Your answer very well may be at Gypsy Moon.

Travel & Recreation – A coworker of mine, Martin, is a very avid rock and ice climber and even though I’m able to admit that I don’t have the gumption to do it myself, I always enjoy seeing photos of his adventures. For anyone who might be interested, you can get a free rock climbing day pass or basic safety lesson with the purchase of one of equal or greater value through Vertical Endeavors.

Home & Garden – Get 20% off your entire purchase a ReStore. There are few organizations out there the are truly the epitome of vitality and reuse than Habitat for Humanity and ReStore. When retailers, contractors and private parties have leftover materials from construction projects, they can get donated to ReStore. ReStore then sells these materials at incredibly good prices and the profits go right back into Habitat for Humanity. Talk about recycling!

All in all, I am so happy that I found this Chinook Book because it is allowing me to explore new stores, businesses and adventures that I would never have normally sought out had it not been for this book. Please note that I am not making any money from posting this, nor getting any referral link proceeds or anything of the sort. I just really believe in this little soy ink printed book and the deals it brings to those who purchase it. Enjoy.

Related

About Adam Warner

I firmly believe that everyone and everything has a story; from childhood to school to social outings to work to vacations or every single thing inbetween. There is always a story involved, this is my chance to share my stories.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Comment

Name *

Email *

Website

Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

Notify me of new posts by email.

I firmly believe that everyone and everything has a story; from childhood to school to social outings to work to vacations or every single thing inbetween. There is always a story involved, this is my chance to share my stories.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.